Toshihiro Sahara of Stone Mountain, GA died peacefully at home on November 12, 2019, at the age of 88, after a long battle with cancer. The eldest of five children, he was born in Tokyo, Japan on April 8, 1931, to Sato and Niro Sahara. While attending Aoyama Gakuin High School, he was apprenticed as a sukiya-style carpenter (post and beam style construction) . After graduating in 1947, he worked as a carpenter for almost a decade before entering Tokyo Biblical Seminary under the sponsorship of Kamiuma Christian Church in 1956. Upon graduating in 1959, he became the pastor of Kamiuma Church located in Komazawa, Tokyo. During his twelve years there, he used his carpentry skills for the construction of a new church building. In 1965, he married his first wife Setsuko Shimago, a teacher from Kagoshima Prefecture, and they had two children.
Feeling called to further his theological studies, he moved to the United States in 1971 and began studying at Oglethorpe University in Atlanta, Georgia. To support himself, he worked as a carpenter for Millen Properties. In 1972 his family in Japan joined him in Atlanta. While attending school and working full time, he saw a need to minister to the Japanese community in Atlanta and founded the Atlanta Dokuritsu (Independent) Christian Church in 1977.
In 1982 while continuing his ministry, he started Sahara Japanese Architectural Woodworks, his own construction business specializing in Japanese woodworking. The scope of his business ranged from tiny items (lamps, tables) to large projects (Japanese style houses). He undertook many projects throughout the southeastern United States, including Japanese style houses, interiors, restaurants, and gardens. His craftsmanship can be seen at the Atlanta Botanical Garden, where he built the azumaya (garden pavilion), gate, and exterior wall in the Japanese garden. Most recently he built a wooden bridge for the Japanese Friendship Garden at Balboa Park in San Diego, California. He was a yearly participant in Atlanta’s JapanFest and crafted the mikoshi (portable shrine traditionally used in Japanese festivals) and yagura (scaffold used as a centerpiece for the festival). His work was featured in the Atlanta Journal and Constitution, The Chicago Tribune, Atlanta Magazine, and Southern Living. He was considered a master woodworker, and his work was widely admired for its precision, quality, and beauty.
For over 40 years he was the pastor of the Atlanta Dokuritsu Christian Church. He opened his home to a steady stream of visitors, many who needed a place to stay, a good meal, or just kind words of encouragement. He was an avid fisherman (not just for people). He enjoyed surf and pier fishing in Pensacola and trout fishing in the Chattahoochee River. He was an enthusiastic amateur sushi chef, and enjoyed every opportunity to share his edible creations. He loved reading, travel (particularly spontaneous long car rides to unknown destinations), railroads, music, rakugo (Japanese comedy), food, and woodworking tools. He often defied practicality, and embraced huge dreams. Throughout his life he maintained a cheerful and positive outlook, and a quirky sense of humor.
After the loss of his wife Setsuko to lung disease in 1991, a mutual friend reintroduced him to Sonoe Takahashi, a former acquaintance and fellow graduate of the Tokyo Biblical Seminary, and they married in 1993.
He is survived by wife Sonoe of Stone Mountain, son Tadashi of College Park, daughter Hikaru and son in law Jason Soriano of Marietta, granddaughters, Alyssa, Anna, and Helena, and sisters Kanae Akimoto of Chiba, Japan and Atsuko Sahara of Tokyo, Japan.
Visitation will take place between 4-6PM on Saturday, Nov. 16 and funeral services at 2PM on Sunday, Nov. 17 at H.M. Patterson & Son - Oglethorpe Hill Chapel.
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